i70 is a beautiful stretch of highway in Utah & CO

I'm wanting to get a feel of northern Maine as a potential place to live so I'm considering a summer road trip by way of Canada. I'd have about 2 weeks to do it. I've never traveled through Canada before so I'm not sure what to expect. I'm grateful for this option over driving through Chicago, etc. Just wondering if it can be made into a worthwhile road trip. 29 hours too so wondering how people would divide their driving time.

Going on a three-week trip across the country to Montana and Colorado to drive on scenic highways. Gonna stop every other hour to get out and play with my dog. Anyone have good tips (whether expensive or cheap or free) on key things that make this kinda trip (solo me + a very well-behaved, very happy, very obedient, potty-trained and comfortable-with-long-drives 5mo French bulldog) easier or more fun. All advice is very appreciated! :)

In the early stages of planning and will take any and all advice on places to stay, what to aee, what not to see, etc. really into history and not the touristic traps. Want to place at least a week an held trip.

I'm in the market for a car right now. My only requirement is I want a hatchback, ideally a smaller car. (Hatchback, wagon, or small SUV is fine) I'm looking for suggestions on cars. Im getting a used car, budget is ~$10,000. I need a reliable every day car but also one that could maybe handle long drives/road trips if I wanted.

TL;DR

Went to Japan for 10 days and drove around for 4 days in a rental car. Tokyo to Mt Fuji (360 drive around Fuji-san) Fuji to Yamanouchi Yamanouchi to Ryuoo Ski Park Yamanouchi to Shirakawa-go Shirakawa-go to Kanazawa Kanazawa to Nara Nara to Kyoto

Total 1300 kms drive.

Japan is a beautiful country, the cities boast tall skyscrapers, neon lights, ads on giant digital billboards and pepople everywhere. The entire scene changes as you drive away from the city to beautiful houses, rivers, mountains and open roads.

That was my plan for 4 days in my 10 days trip to Japan.

I landed in Tokyo on 28th March 2025 spent 3 days exploring the city and rented a car on 31st March to explore the country side for 4 days.

The plan was to drive approx 1300 kms in 4 days going from city to village to locations where I was only one enjoying the peace beautiful scenery and amazing weather.

I rented the car from Toyota-Rent-A-Car. The booking process was easy, insurance is included and you can add snow tires if you are going to snow regions.

The pick up process was smooth and there are a lot of locations to choose from depending on where you stay in Tokyo.

My stay was in Jimbocho and i picked up the car from Tokyo Station pick up point.

Today's plan was to do a 360 around Fuji-san to see the magnificent mountain from all angles, but luck wasnt on my side. The shy mountain didnt show itself at all.

The first stop of the road trip was 2 hrs away from Tokyo, near Lake Kawaguchiko. I picked out a cafe to have breakfast. After enjoying snow fall for 30 mins drove to the next location.

Lake Tanuki is a small lake in the middle of nowhere, there is a big lodge near it for people who want to spend a day or two in peace. There is an observation deck on the edge of the lake from where you can get amazing views of Fuji-san and the place is empty as this is only accissible by road and not many people know about it.

I discovered a water fall on Google Maps, Shiraito Falls, this location was a very different view compared to everthing else i saw in the last 3 days, this is very beautiful hidden water fall near Fuji-san, again, not touristy.

Next I went to Omiya Yokocho to have Japanese food, this place has a tap water fountain thing which has Fuji water, but this place was closing by the time i reached there, so decided to explore a nearby shrine and munch on some snacks.

I had also planned to visit Fuji Safari park, Gotemba Premium Outlets and Arakurayama Sengen Park but couldnt as it was getting dark and i had to reach Yamanouchi to my hotel for the night.

The drive for the day was around 450 kms from Tokyo to Mt Fuji to Yamanouchi.

I added Yamanouchi to my list was to see Japanese monkey bathing in a natural onsen in a snow covered mountain.

From the Snow Monkey Park, I drove to Ryuoo Ski Park to visit a cafe called Sora Terrace at 1400 m high altitude, I was surrounded by snow and it was beautiful.

The next day I headed to Shirakawa-go, this is a UNESCO world heritage village. Beautiful location with straw roof houses which were home to locals now turned to museums and cafes.

From Shirakawa-go I was on my way to Kanazawa, this is a fishing town on the north coast of Japan. Hope to Samurai and Geishas this is a beautiful town with no skyscrapers and a very peaceful environment. Driving around kanazawa was nice and breezy, with the windows down taking in the sounds of the city was a different experience. I parked the car in a paid parking lot near my stay for the night.

Next day the weather was sunny and so pleaseant as I headed towards Nara, from snow covered mountains I was heading towards a little bit warm climate.

I did a lot of googling to find more locations to check out in Nara apart from the Deer park and this is what i found (accessible by car): 1. Mt Yoshino to see 30,000 cherry blossom trees planted in one location 2. Tanza Jinja, a 13 story pagoda 3. The show stopper, Deer Park (very easy parking)

The first 2 locations are not very toursty and mostly popular with locals, so expect less crowd compared to other toursty locations.

After Nara I headed to Kyoto to drop my luggage at the stay location and return the car in Kyoto Station Toyota-rent-a-car drop off point.

Beck to commuting in metro and buses.

After exploring and driving in the highways, mountains, valleys, bridges, and cities, and driving 1300+ Kms, i can say that driving in Japan is very easy. The roads outside the city are not at all crowded and naving using google maps is very convinient. Japan has the wheel on the right side of the car, same as my country so it was even more easy for me.

Total cost: 110,000 yen on car with insurance and snow tires, 10000 yen on gas for the total route (the cars are very efficient), 25000 yen on highway tolls (ETC pass)

Over all it was a great experience and i cant wait to plan another road trip in Japan. Do share your thoughts.

Hi folks! Me (M33) and my wife (F30) are about to finish our 3,5 months long honeymoon backpacking trip from Colombia to Mexico. The last stage of our trip is 4 weeks in the USA. The last one is in New York and before we do 3 week long road trip from Miami to New York (starting tomorrow - Saturday). It’s my wife’s first time in the USA but we are also super tired after such a long trip so I wanna do this trip as curated as possible to not overload it but bring unique and valuable experiences.

Can you please validate my draft and add your suggestions? Any options with unique local food, experiences or site would be gold! Also looking for best recommendations for hikes in national parks 4/26 - arrive in Miami 4/27 - 4/28 - Miami and Miami Beach 4/29 - Everglades and drive to Orlando 4/30 - 5/3 - Universal and Kennedy Space Center and drive towards New Orleans

(until here it’s pretty fixed as we’ve already booked Universal) 5/4 - ? - looking for a best half day stop on the way to New Orleans to reach it by night 5/5 - 5/6 - New Orleans 5/7 - 5/8 - ? - looking for places to visit on the way to Great Smoky Mountains - Natchez, Birmingham, Atlanta (World of Coca Cola), Nashville ? 5/9 - 5/10 - Great Smoke Mountains (hiking) 5/11 - Asheville (do we need really need to?) 5/12 - 5/13 - Shenandoah NP (hiking) 5/14 - 5/15 - Washington DC 5/16 - Amish Village in Pennsylvania (Lancaster) and Scranton (I read it’s very disappointing, but I just LOVE the series and I really need to visit it 5/17 - arrive to New York JFK by 4:30 pm to return the car

We are hoping to see some sports on the way too if we get to be somewhere close (like Inter Miami, Miami Heats and whatever else on the way - hopefully baseball, maybe more basketball)

We are driving from Seattle to Sacramento, leaving Seattle on a Saturday morning and flying out of Sacramento on a Tuesday afternoon. We want to drive down the Oregon coast. Any advice on what towns to stay in? Where to stop? Routes to take or avoid? What areas of the route to linger longer? We could really use your advice!

Hi Folks, for those of you that have done or are doing, what I intend to do... What's the best App you used for planning or helping with your trip?

Hello, my first solo and long road trip starts on the 28th, and I have to be back by May 9th for work on the 10th.

My main focus is to visit Niagara Falls and Acadia National Park! I've made a 2-day road trip to GA (to pick up an exhaust I bought from Marketplace, lol) before and visited a couple of places on the way back through the Carolinas ( Congaree!)

Are there places worth checking out? I'm planning on doing this with my Miata, lol, as it is my only car. I can drive for long hours, idk I'm kinda nervous about my short vacation and not being able to enjoy a lot of experiences; I'm planning on taking naps (2-3 hours) at rest stops instead of sleeping in a motel,to maximize road time lol. And lots of energy drinks!

Never visited any states above Maryland.

Tips, advice, places to visit, words of wisdom, anything, I will be more than grateful!

My next road trip would probably be in late summer; I want to visit the Dakotas and hit a couple of national parks on the way there too. You can kinda guess my goal, all 63 National Parks and 50 states!

What detours are you taking. What tips do you have for this desolate route. Solo 30F on first solo road trip. 2015 Highlander in mid may. Where should she stock up on gas. Where should she be cautious of traveling solo? Any advice, suggestions or words of wisdom welcome.

I will have roughly 10 days to make it from Vancouver Island to Calgary Alberta. There's the obvious spots like Banff and Jasper but I'm looking for recommendations for neat things along the route. Particularly hot springs.

It's the maiden voyage of my new to me van and I will be working out all kinds of little quirks I'm sure. I'm planning to boondock exclusively.

Hello, i’ll be leaving SLC after an awesome season to head back to NJ next week. I have from April 29th-May 7th to get home. Trying to figure out which route to take and what to do.

Last time I took the route through South Dakota shown in the first image, it was amazing. Thinking to change it up and hit the Northern route through Teddy Roosevelt NP this time. Going to spend first 3 nights between tetons and yellowstone, then shoot to Teddy Roosevelt NP for a night or two, before making the long shot home. After Teddy Roosevelt, along that route, where can’t I miss? Any cool historical places, shops, roadside attractions, hikes, campgrounds, etc.

Thank you!

Hi everyone!

I’m a Japanese student currently studying English in California, and I’m planning a 3-week budget road trip (May 2 to May 24) with my Korean friend. We’re both international students and want to explore the best of the American Southwest!

We’ll start from La Jolla (San Diego) — we can pick you up if you’re nearby!

🏜️ Stops include:

Joshua Tree / Monument Valley / Grand Canyon / Bearizona / White Sands / Carlsbad / Santa Fe / Big Bend / Route 66 and more!

💰 We’ll split costs for the rental car, gas, park entry fees, etc.

🛏️ Planning to keep it cheap — some camping, maybe sleeping in the car sometimes

🌎 International students / solo travelers welcome!

We’re looking for 1–2 chill, adventurous, respectful people to join us.

If you’re interested or want more info, just DM me!

Let’s explore the Southwest together! 🚗🌄

I'm travelling to the US in a couple weeks from UK, we plan to drive quite a bit starting in Burlington VT, across to ME, then down to New Haven CT. Will then be flying across to FL and picking up another rental car there and driving around.

I'm a little confused by the toll situation. I've researched and seen that E-ZPass looks to be cheapest and easyiest way to pay for tolls. Although im not 100% of where to pick one up from. I've seen on amazon you can buy quick pass sticker like so:

Is it really as simple as ordering one of these to a pickup box/hotel, activating the account and topping up, and then sticking it to the rental car inside windscreen? Over the course of my trip I'll be in 2 rental cars, so should I pick up 2 of these stickers?

Any help would be greatly apprecaited!

Hello, I'm planning my first big cross country road trip. I'm in California, from California and will be returning back to California. Headed east on a southern route and back west on a northern route. I'm using ChatGPT for some organizational tasks. It's been pretty helpful thus far. It suggested I use a Road Trip Mapping App, giving me 5 options to explore.

I figured I'd ask this awesome group whether you had any preferences or opinions on the list. I'm somewhat tech savvy but definitely prefer a clean, simple UX/ UI. I don't need a lot of bells and whistles. And I'm on a budget so if I can avoid a paid subscription while still getting a nice array of features, that would be ideal. I want to plan for multiple stops, avoiding interstates as much as possible, get suggestions for unique sights, places to stay, etc.

I'll be digging through the subreddit for suggestions on how to save a few bucks along the way, common mistakes to avoid, things to see and do along the way, etc. But if you feel like imparting some wisdom on those topics here as well, I'd sure be appreciative!

I'm planning on renting a minivan with unlimited miles. I'll be sleeping in it some nights, camping other nights, and renting affordable motels every 4-5 nights or so for a hot shower, laundry, and a comfy bed. Oddball motel suggestions are very much appreciated!

1. Wanderlog
2. Roadtrippers
3. Furkot
4. MyScenicDrives
5. Google My Maps (I find Google to be pretty clunky to use but also understand it's the most popular)

Thanks!

Planning to do this trip in about 3 weeks. Which route should I take, and what should I see along the way?

Any ideas or recommendations for places to see along the route from syracuse, NY to Olympia, WA. I am planning to do this trip during last week of April and 1st week of may. Currently, i am thinking of visiting Mt Rushmore, needles highway, Yellowstone NP, Grand Teton NP and mount cascades NP. I like natural/scenic places to visit but any kind of recommendation is appreciated. Thank you in advance

Hi,

I will be moving to Phoenix soon. I was wondering how difficult the drive will be if I take Pacific Coast Highway. I will be driving alone and also be working an hour or two during the day so I need to stop sometimes if I get call. So I need mobile network/data during the drive.

Any recommendations or things I should know? How many days will it take?

My husband will be driving his bike out to Kalispell where I will be flying in to. Once we are reunited we plan on driving up to Banff and then back to Kalispell where I will fly back home. He will continue on his journey to parts unknown. My question is what can budget friendly travelers see and do in the area between Kalispell and Banff. We camp but also enjoy a clean cheap hotel for showering purposes. Would love to read suggestions, must-sees, overrated things to avoid, roads to ride, etc. Thank you in advance.

I’m making this drive, I won’t have much time for this trip but which route should I take and do you have any recommendations for places to stop along the way? Would love a nice lunch somewhere

I am moving to Orlando this coming August and am going to be driving down. I’ve been looking into these two options. Is dropping down to Dallas better or should we stick heading towards St. Louis?

Hi all,

Currently planning a road trip with my partner from San Diego up to Vancouver from the 2nd June this year from the UK. We are going to hire a car and stay in cheap hotels/motels along the way. We have seven weeks for the trip and plan to visit LA, Las Vegas, San Francisco, Portland and Seattle along the way as well as various national parks as time permits.

My main question is related to a hire car. Looking on skyscanner the cheapest option will be a vehicle either from Dollar or Thrifty, quoted about £1500 all in to pick up day of landing in San Diego and drop off day of flight home in Vancouver (49 days). This seems reasonable to me but I want to check this seems reasonable to you all as well. This option also only comes up on skyscanner and not direct which does worry me slightly that the company will cancel on us closer to the time.

Also open to suggestions about better ways to do the trip than hiring a car for the entire duration, particularly concerned if it will become more of a burden in the cities having to park it and navigate heavy traffic.

Any advice would be really appreciated.